On-board bidirectional AC fast charger for electric vehicles

ABSTRACT

An electric vehicle fast charger and methods thereof are described, adapted for re-use of magnetic components of an electric vehicle having traction converters when the electric vehicle is stationary and connected to a power grid. A switching stage provided by one or more sets of switches is controlled complementarily with the switches of the traction converters to (i) provide inversion of a grid voltage and (ii) shape current of the grid current between the electric vehicle and the power grid to track a waveshape of the grid voltage. A single switching stage and a dual switching stage circuit are contemplated, along with switch controller circuits, and instruction sets for switch control. Variants provide for energy transfer to accommodate for energy imbalances between storage devices.

CROSS-REFERENCE

This application is a non-provisional of, and claims all benefit,including priority to, U.S. Application No. 62/572,120, filed 13 Oct.2017, entitled “On-board bidirectional AC fast charger for electricvehicles”, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

Some embodiments of the present disclosure generally relates to thefield of power electronics, and more specifically, to charger technologyfor use with electric vehicles or other portable electronics.

INTRODUCTION

Providing electric charging with power electronics can be challenging,especially with electrically powered portable objects, such as electricvehicles (EVs) or portable generators. Electric vehicles require asignificant amount of power for propulsion, control systems,entertainment systems, over a sustained period of time. Electricvehicles often have electric-vehicle batteries/traction batteries, andmay be configured for high power to weight, and energy to weight ratios,with optimized power to weight ratios.

In some cases, multiple batteries are utilized, for example, to drivemultiple motors. Heavy duty operation, such as for certain trucks, andother may require dual inverters as a higher voltage may be possible foruse with higher voltage motors that may aid in increasing efficiency.Where higher voltages are possible, there may be potential efficiencyimprovements that may reduce the need for an additional motor.

Electric vehicles are desirable for, among others, promoting cleaner andmore environmental friendly sources of energy for powering vehicles.However, electric vehicles have had relatively slow adoption due tolimitations relating to electric vehicle technology, especially inrelation to energy storage and charging. Faster charging enables morerange to be obtained, and impacts the effectiveness of the electricvehicle as an everyday mode of transportation.

Chargers for electric vehicles are often very expensive as chargingstations are implemented with bulky and heavy designs where dedicatedelectronics are required.

Accordingly, there is a desire to provide improved charger technology.

SUMMARY

An EV fast charger is described which offers a cost-effective andconvenient means of charging an EV from an external power outlet (e.g.,a AC power outlet, or a DC power source, according to differentembodiments). The fast charger, in some embodiments, is optimized foron-board charging, for example, where the fast charger resides on or iscoupled to a housing of a portable electronic device, such as anelectric vehicle. The EV fast charger can charge from a single phase ACor DC power source. In some embodiments, off-board charging is alsocontemplated (e.g., where the charger is external to the housing).

The electric vehicle fast charger is adapted for re-using magneticcomponents of one or more motors of an electric vehicle having one ormore traction converters having one or more traction converter switchesthat are not in use when the electric vehicle is stationary. Inparticular, the electric vehicle fast charger includes a pair ofdifferential terminals configured for coupling to a power grid providinga grid voltage having a waveshape and frequency.

A grid current is established between the power grid and the electricvehicle fast charger. A challenge with interoperability occurs inrelation to the waveform and/or frequency of the grid current, and atechnical objective is to use technical mechanisms to impose (e.g.,regulate) the grid current such that it has a same (or significantlysimilar) waveshape and/or frequency as the grid voltage.

One or more sets of switches are provided that provide a first switchingstage. These switches are coupled to the power grid through thedifferential terminals and coupled to a corresponding energy storagedevice of one or more energy storage devices. In various embodiments,each set of switches can include at least one of: currentuni-directional switches or current bi-directional two quadrantswitches.

The fast charger includes one or more energy storage devices, eachcoupled to a corresponding set of switches of the one or more sets ofswitches and coupled to a corresponding traction converter of the one ormore traction converters.

A switching controller is provided that is configured for generatinggating signals that control the switches of the switching stage toeither (i) provide inversion of the grid voltage, or (ii) providecurrent shaping to impose the same waveshape or frequency as the gridvoltage on to the grid current, and complementarily, control the one ormore traction converter switches to (i) provide inversion synchronouswith the grid voltage, or (ii) provide current shaping to impose thesame waveshape or frequency as the grid voltage on to the grid current.Accordingly, the controller manipulates the operation of the switchessuch that either the switching stage provides the inversion, and thetraction converter switches provides the current shaping, or vice versa.The current shaping, along with the inversion effectively forces thegrid current to have the same or similar shape or frequency as the gridvoltage.

Some embodiments described are directed to technology, thecommercialization of which would help to resolve or mitigateenvironmental impacts or conserve the natural environment and resources.The technologies pertain to green technologies including greenhouse gasreduction by way of advancing energy conservation by usage ofless-polluting and less impactful energy sources, including an increasedadoption and efficiency having regard to renewable energy resources.Some embodiments described reduce overall physical componentrequirements (e.g., by way of reusing existing magnetics throughimproved control techniques and circuit topologies). Furthermore,flexible power factor and reactive power considerations aid inestablishing connections to electrical grids, for example, to providepower back into the electrical grid, as required in certain situations.Improved control characteristics allow for a more flexible range ofoperation.

The fast charger is provided in the form of an improved convertertopology (which, in some embodiments, is provided in the form of anelectric circuit, hardware device, or circuit board storing electroniccomponents thereof), whereby a converter is provided that is adapted forbi-directional power flow and/or flexible operation at different powerfactors. Methods of operating same and providing same are contemplatedin some embodiments, and furthermore, in some embodiments, machinereadable media (e.g., computer readable media) storing machine readableinstruction sets are contemplated. These instruction sets, when executedon hardware circuits, including waveform controllers, implement parts ofthe methods described herein.

In some embodiments, bi-directional power flow is provided independentlyfrom flexible operation at different power factors, and in otherembodiments, flexible operation at different power factors is providedwithout bi-directional power flow. In some embodiments, a combination ofbi-directional power flow is provided and flexible operation atdifferent power factors is provided.

The bi-directional charger is capable of both charging and dischargingan energy storage device (e.g., battery, capacitor), and thus may supplyreal and/or reactive power to another element (e.g., a power grid) suchthat the vehicle's battery can be used as a back-up power supply amongother uses. Bi-directionality, for example, is useful in emergencysituations, such as where power is scarce and the battery of a vehicleis a last resort to drive another device, such as a generator (e.g., tomaintain operations for a hospital during a hurricane).

In some embodiments, a single traction converter version is described.In other embodiments, two traction converters are provided thatinteroperate with one another. Two traction converters, provides amongother benefits, an increased voltage range.

The fast charger can be modelled as having an “switching stage” and“traction converter” components, and in combination, the “switchingstage” and “traction converter” components with an energy storage devicecan be considered a “charging stage” where a “on-board fast charger” iscomposed of one or more “charging stages” and a motor.

The switching stage is a set of switches that can be utilized for either(1) providing inversion or (2) current shaping, or a combinationthereof, according to various embodiments, whereby the switches of thetraction converters are utilized for the other functionality. Currentshaping is utilized to reduce harmonics such that the waveforms track(e.g., attempt to match) the waveform of the input source (e.g., an ACsource having a specific waveform and frequency).

An important consideration to note is that the switches of the switchingstage can be selected to optimize a switching efficiency, while theswitches of the traction stage have less flexibility for selection asthe switches of the traction stage are often either already present onelectric vehicles, or have already been selected to be optimized for adifferent function, such as providing locomotion (for electric vehicle)or torque generally (for a generator). Accordingly, the switches of thetraction stage are likely to be better for either providing inversionfunctionality or current shaping functionality depending on the specificswitches utilized in the traction stage, relative to the switches of theswitching stage.

In this specification, the switching stage may be referred to as aninverting stage, but in various embodiments, the functionality of theinverting stage and the traction stage may be reversed such that theinverting stage provides current shaping and the traction convertersprovide current inversion. In further embodiments, the selection ofwhich of the switching stage and the traction stage provide whichfunctionality is determined, either pre-determined or dynamicallydetermined, by a controller circuit. The controller circuit, in someembodiments, monitors operating characteristics of the device (e.g.,through sensors) or switch operating parameters to select and assignfunctionality to the switching stage and the traction stage. Thefunctionality is implemented through modifying the control mechanismapplied to the switches such that the switches of the specific stage arecontrolled to operate in accordance with gating signals that determinewhich switches conduct and at what times (e.g., at what frequency).

Monitored operating characteristics include determinations of switchinglosses, and operating parameters may include switch ratings, switchmechanisms of operation (such as transistor type), among others. In someembodiments, the fast charger includes sensors which are utilized tomonitor the grid voltage and its characteristics, for example, to trackhow well the grid current waveform matches that observed at the gridvoltage (e.g., to provide control through feedback).

The inverting stage may be implemented with current bi-directional twoquadrant switches as opposed to single quadrant switching devices, andwhen these switches are used, the inverting stage may invert the voltageof the ac fast charger at any phase of the fundamental grid frequencyprovided that the maximum expected input voltage at the differentialterminals of the converter is less than the sum of the two energystorage element voltages. Other embodiments are possible, for example,diodes can be utilized rather than the current bi-directional twoquadrant switches, but where diodes are utilized, the charger is notable to provide bi-directional charging and operates at unity powerfactor.

Switching device examples with current bi-directional two quadrantswitching capability include insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBT),power metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs),among others. Switching device examples with current uni-directionalswitching capability include diodes, among others. In the case of singleinverter embodiments, the battery voltage must be greater than the peakvoltage under all conditions. In the case of dual inverter embodiments,the sum of the battery voltages must be greater than the peak voltageunder all state-of-charge conditions.

Bi-directional power flow allows for a greater range of uses relative toa typical converter, for example, where the motor of a vehicle with thecharging stages (e.g., where the source of energy for the grid is fromthe batteries of the vehicle), can be used (e.g., instead of fortransportation) as a source of energy for grid support applications,such as voltage support, frequency regulation, and peak shaving. Thestructure of the charger is also inherently fault-tolerant to grid-sidefaults, thereby potentially preventing damage to the on-boardcomponents.

Similarly, operation at different power factors allows for improvedflexibility for potential grid connections for the EV fast charger(e.g., a unity power factor, a power factor of 0.7). Compared to analternate approach where operation is required at a unity power factor,the charger of some embodiments is configured to operate in respect ofreal and reactive power. The ability to operate to produce or absorbreactive power provides power flexibility. The inverting stage isadapted to provide the charger with the flexibility to operate atdifferent power factors. Flexibility of operation is useful, forexample, as each power utility may operate with differentcharacteristics, allowing the charger to flexibly modify a power factorto suit a particular power utility. The ability to operate in relationto reactive power aids in providing grid support capabilities.Injections of reactive power can help ensure that a voltage profile ofthe grid does meet regulatory or safety requirements, among otherbenefits. Reactive power is becoming increasingly desirable, and someutilities are able to demand reactive power to be fed into the grid, forexample, to increase voltages depending on power demand, etc. Thereactive power can be utilized to stabilize voltages at the grid.

The configuration of the fast charger provides improved controlcharacteristics relative to alternate approaches whereby a power factorcorrection mechanism includes a front end rectifier, requiring controlbandwidth up to the 6^(th) harmonic of the fundamental component (e.g.,control bandwidth up to 720 Hz for a 60 Hz system). In comparison, someembodiments of the fast charger described herein only need to track asingle frequency (e.g., 60 Hz frequency for a 60 Hz system, or 50 Hz,depending on a grid frequency).

In some aspects, the converter is capable of operating both as a driveand as an AC fast charger. The embodiments of the on-board fast chargercan include, among others, four major parts, including a motor, tractionconverter, energy storage device (e.g., battery, capacitor), andinverting stage. The proposed converter is an on-board AC fast chargerthat advantageously utilizes the leakage inductance of the motor of anelectric vehicle, enabling the charger to re-use magnetics of the motorfor charging which conventionally would not be used when the vehicle isstationary, in combination with a switching stage (noted as the inverterstage in some aspects below).

The proposed on-board AC fast charger, according to some embodiments, isconfigured to serve dual purposes as both (i) a single-phase AC fastcharger when the vehicle is stationary, and (ii) a traction converterwhen the vehicle is in motion. As a fast charger, the topology iscapable of accommodating various commercial input AC voltages. Theon-board AC fast charger redeploys the traction converter and motor foruse in AC fast charging of the battery when stationary. An isolationtransformer may not be necessary in some situations, and if required,the transformer itself could be installed at the charging station.Accordingly, minimal charging infrastructure is needed for the chargingstation, limited to either a cable or cable with isolation transformer.

The proposed AC fast charger of some embodiments enables AC electricvehicle charging without using a dedicated battery charger, leading topotential cost, weight, efficiency savings, and improved convenience forthe customer (e.g., a driver of the electric vehicle). For someembodiments that use a single traction converter, the EV dynamicallyredeploys the traction converter and motor for use in AC fast chargingof the battery when stationary. As described above, the motor's leakageinductance is used in some embodiments to re-use components when theelectric vehicle is stationary. When charging, the inverting stage andtraction converter are controlled to charge the battery. Beyond chargingof the battery, the system allows for bi-directional operation and canoperate at various power factors, in some embodiments.

In another aspect, the converter system uses two inverter systems. Wherethere are two inverter systems, a dual inverter drive can be providedwith two traction converters to drive the vehicle when in motion. Thetopology's structure allows two lower voltage batteries to be indirectlyseries connected through two traction converters. This implies that thevoltage range is expanded, thus allowing for higher input AC voltages tobe accommodated during charging without the need for a boost-typeconverter, for instance.

As a motor drive, the dual inverter drive has the benefit of increasingthe rated voltage of the motor drive, and consequently increasing drivesystem efficiency. Such an embodiment also has two separate energystorage units where one or two of these energy storage units may bebatteries of similar or dissimilar chemistry. In various furtheraspects, the disclosure provides corresponding systems and devices, andlogic structures such as machine-executable coded instruction sets forimplementing such systems, devices, and methods.

In an aspect, an electric vehicle fast charger adapted for re-usingmagnetic components of a motor of an electric vehicle and the tractionconverter that are not in use when the electric vehicle is stationary isprovided, the electric vehicle fast charger configured for coupling tothe motor and removable coupling to a power grid: the electric vehiclefast charger comprising an inverting stage including either currentuni-directional switches configured to invert the voltage to maintainunity power factor operation or current bi-directional two quadrantswitches configured to invert the voltage of the traction converter atany phase of the fundamental grid frequency provided that the maximumexpected input voltage at the differential terminals of the fast chargeris the peak voltage of the AC source.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger is positionedwithin a housing of an electric vehicle and coupled to both (i) one ormore electric motors of the electric vehicle and (ii) one or more energystorage devices of the electric vehicle.

In another aspect, one or more magnetic components of the one or moreelectric motors is utilized for providing propulsion during drive modeof the electric vehicle, and to control power flow to or from the one ormore energy storage devices of the electric vehicle to the power gridduring charging mode.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger is configured foroperation at a plurality of power factors.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger is configured forbi-directional power flow operation.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger is configured forproviding power flow to the power grid.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger is configured tocontrol the flow of reactive power to the power grid.

In another aspect, two or more traction converters are configured forinteroperation with one another.

In another aspect, the electric vehicle fast charger variant consistingof the inverting stage of any of the above aspects is connected to anenergy storage device, a traction inverter, and motor where the powergrid is connected to the inverting stage and motor where the invertingstages are configured such that the maximum expected AC source inputvoltage at the differential terminals of the fast charger is below thevoltage of the energy storage device.

In another aspect, a variant charger is provided consisting of twoinverting stages, two energy storage devices, two traction inverters,and a motor where the power grid is connected to the two invertingstages where the inverting stages are connected in such a way that themaximum expected AC source input voltage at the differential terminalsof the fast charger is below the sum total voltage of the two energystorage devices.

In another aspect, the charger is controlled by control hardware thatneed only track a signal at the grid frequency.

In another aspect, an electric vehicle is provided including theelectric vehicle fast charger of any of the embodiments.

In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment in detail, itis to be understood that the embodiments are not limited in applicationto the details of construction and to the arrangements of the componentsset forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings.Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminologyemployed herein are for the purpose of description and should not beregarded as limiting.

Many further features and combinations thereof concerning embodimentsdescribed herein will appear to those skilled in the art following areading of this disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

In the figures, embodiments are illustrated by way of example. It is tobe expressly understood that the description and figures are only forthe purpose of illustration and as an aid to understanding.

Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, withreference to the attached figures, wherein in the figures:

FIGS. 1A-1D are schematic diagrams of alternative on-board chargerapproaches.

FIG. 2A is a topology diagram illustrating a proposed integrated batterycharger using a motor with an accessible neutral point, according tosome embodiments.

FIG. 2B is a topology diagram of an alternate embodiment utilizing twotraction converters, according to some embodiments.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are topology diagrams of some embodiments of a proposedintegrated battery charger using a single inverter (FIG. 3A) and a dualinverter system (FIG. 3B), according to some embodiments. FIG. 3Aincludes a single return connection from the motor (i.e., an accessibleneutral point), and FIG. 3B includes a three-phase return connectionfrom the motor (open-stator).

FIG. 4 is a set of waveform diagrams illustrating, for example, system(dual inverter version) waveforms when operating at unity power factor,according to some embodiments.

FIG. 5. is an average model of the dual inverter embodiment,illustrating that the charging stage can be viewed as three bipolarvoltage sources (one for each phase of the traction converter), wherebythe three bipolar voltage sources are linked by power balance to thedependent current source, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 6. Is a control diagram illustrative of an approach to control,whereby a charging controller ensure the grid current has minimalharmonics, ensures the desired power factor is achieved, and ensures thecorrect power is extracted from the grid, according to some embodiments.The control approach utilizes energy balance controller to control thecirculation of power between the upper and lower charging stages, and amodulation block is configured to determine the gating signals that aretransmitted to the upper and lower charging stages, according to someembodiments.

FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram of an alternate approach, illustrating arectified current waveform and its Fourier decomposition, depicting arequired control bandwidth, consisting of frequency components up to andincluding the 6th harmonic of the fundamental component, according tosome embodiments. Some embodiments described within the specificationprovide easier control relative to the alternative approach of FIG. 7.

FIG. 8 includes waveform simulation results for an on-board fast chargeroperating at unity power factor, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 9 includes waveform simulation results for an on-board fast chargeroperating at power factor 0.7 leading, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 10 includes waveform simulation results for an on-board fastcharger supplying power to the grid, according to some embodiments,wherein the system is bidirectional (capable of charging and dischargingthe energy storage device).

FIG. 11 includes waveform simulation results for an on-board fastcharger transferring power between battery packs using voltagedifference between traction converters, according to some embodiments,whereby energy balance can be achieved by changing the relative voltagebetween the charging stages. The upper charging stage produces 60% ofthe grid voltage instead of 50% as previously discussed using FIG. 4. Inthe case of FIG. 11, each traction converter phase carries the samecurrent, only the voltage output by the traction converters changes. Theaverage power plotted in the last graph shows that the average power ofthe upper charging stage is greater than the lower one.

FIG. 12A, FIG. 12B, and FIG. 12C include waveform simulation results foran on-board fast charger transferring power between battery packs usingcirculating currents, according to some embodiments, where energybalance can be achieved by circulating currents within the machine.However, the voltages must be changed as well. In this case the currentsof each phase are different, and the voltages output by each phase arealso different.

FIG. 13 is a topology diagram illustrating when the system is interfacedto a DC grid for the single-inverter drive variant, according to someembodiments.

FIG. 14A, FIG. 14B, FIG. 14C are waveform diagrams illustrating that allthree phase outputs, (u, v, and w) are equal in normal operation (i.e.,when there is not a need to transfer energy between charging stage 1 and2).

FIG. 15 includes waveform simulation results illustrating higher powercharging operation at a power factor of 0.7 leading, according to someembodiments.

FIG. 16 is an image of a liquid cooled 110 kW machine used as part ofthe experimental setup, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 17 is an image of a liquid cooled dual inverter drive converterfeaturing two charging stages, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 18 is a set of experimentally obtained waveform resultsdemonstrating charging operation at unity power factor, according tosome embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A typical on-board charger consists of a DC/AC stage and an isolatedDC/DC stage connected to the AC grid. Alternatively, isolation can beprovided through an off-board transformer. The isolated DC/DC stage isable to accommodate variations in battery voltage. Such an on-boardcharger is an additional component to a vehicle, which adds cost andweight to the vehicle that is un-used when the vehicle is in motion.

As described in some embodiments herein, an improved approach forutilizing existing magnetics (e.g., of the vehicle when it is not inmotion) for providing fast-charging capabilities. The proposed converterof some embodiments is an on-board AC fast charger that advantageouslyutilizes the leakage inductance of the motor of an electric vehicle,enabling the charger to re-use magnetics of the motor for charging whichconventionally would not be used when the vehicle is stationary. Anadditional switching stage (having one or more sets of switches) isprovided. The sets of switches of the additional switching stage arecomplementarily controlled along with the switches of the tractioncomponents such that waveform control of the current flowing between thegrid and the fast charger can be performed. Either the switching stageor the traction components perform inversion, and the other performscurrent shaping through coordinated control of their component switchesby a switching controller.

The switching controller attempts to impose controls to the current totrack (e.g., match) the voltage waveform coming from the grid, whichimproves interoperability, as noted herein. The solutions described invarious embodiments help reduce switching losses and improvecontrollability relative to some alternate approaches. Some embodimentscan provide improved interoperation with DC grid sources, and otherembodiments can provide improved interoperation with AC grid sources. Insome embodiments, the circuit can be used interchangeably with AC and DCgrid sources. AC and DC sources are described below, and are meant to benon-limiting examples.

A technical distinction, in some embodiments, is that a sinusoidal gridvoltage can be achieved while simultaneously maintaining a sinusoidalcurrent within the motor windings. Relative to a diode converter, whichrequires a rectified sinusoidal motor current to flow, the ability ofthe topology of some embodiments, to operate with sinusoidal motorcurrents eliminates significant harmonic losses (e.g., non-50/60 Hzcomponents, which could depend on jurisdiction, etc.) in the motor andreduces the distortion in an AC grid current.

The need to have only 50/60 Hz currents to flow in the motorsignificantly reduces the required bandwidth of any associated controlsystem and can also enable use of lower switching frequencies, thusfurther reducing losses.

A summary of AC level charging is shown in Table I.

For AC level 1 charging, the rectifier and DC/DC converter is typicallyinstalled on-board the vehicle to provide simple “plug-in and charge”functionality. The charger at this power level delivers up to 1.4 kW tothe battery, and can be plugged into any available 120V single-phaseresidential power outlet.

AC level 2 chargers offer EV charging between 4 kW to 19.2 kW from 240Vsingle-phase or three-phase private or public outlets.

AC level 3 charging is available at commercial fast charging stations,but requires dedicated off-board hardware to supply power level above 50kW.

To address charger complexity, combined traction and charging systemshave been studied extensively by the Applicant. An objective is toconfigure on-board traction components for charging, thus eliminating orgreatly reducing the complexity of battery chargers. Alternateapproaches proposed an integrated charger based on a 9-phase tractionsystem. The on-board traction components, in accordance with someembodiments, accommodates fast charging by providing a topology that canaccommodate a plurality of commercial input AC voltages.

As shown in the circuit diagram 100A on FIG. 1A, the machine's neutralpoints can be directly connected to a three-phase AC input 102, thusrequiring no additional hardware between the AC grid and tractionsystem. This topology also produces no net torque for vehicle propulsionin the charging process.

Other multiphase machines for integrated charging have been considered.In terms of integrated charging via single-phase AC systems, FIG. 1Bshows the topology proposed by a second approach. It employs thetraction system as a PFC boost converter, which is interfaced to asingle-phase AC source via a rectifier 104. In FIG. 1C, yet anotheralternate approach used a set of parallel-connected traction convertersand two motors to charge from a single-phase AC source and therebyeliminates the need for the rectifier.

In either topology, the charger requires no additional DC/DC converters,thus addressing weight, volume, and cost considerations of the electricvehicle supply equipment (EVSE). However, in both cases, the minimumallowable battery voltage must always exceed the peak voltage of the ACmains. For example, in the dual inverter embodiment of FIG. 2B, doublethe AC voltage can be supported for a given level of battery voltage,which is an improvement relative to the topologies shown above in FIGS.1A-1C. In some embodiments, this is an important consideration as itallows the accommodation of standard battery/energy storage deviceswithout the need for specialized battery/energy storage devices. Astandard 600 V class of semiconductors can be utilized, for example, toachieve the topology shown, as opposed to a higher voltage class ofsemiconductors. For example, in the topologies shown above in FIGS.1A-1C, higher classes of semiconductors and energy storage devices wouldbe required, increasing cost and complexity, and may reduce safety.

For drive applications, the dual inverter traction system uses twotraction converters to increase speed range and battery integrationwithout the use of DC/DC power converters or additional magneticmaterials, thus offering an efficient and light-weight solutionattractive for electric vehicles.

A challenge associated with the dual inverter drive is the need tocharge two independent batteries. An alternate approach demonstratedthat a single charger could be utilized for charging both batteries.Shown in FIG. 1D, the primary battery 106 is charged using a standalonecharger 108, while the secondary battery is charged from the first viathe traction system 110.

TABLE I Charging Level Charger Location Typical Use Expected Power LevelAC level 1 On-board Home or office 1.4 kW (12 A) 120 Vac (US) 1-phase1.9 kW (20 A) 230 Vac (EU) AC level 2 On-board Private or public outlet  4 kW (17 A) 240 Vac (US) 1-phase or 3-phase   8 kW (32 A) 400 Vac (EU)19.2 kW (80 A)  AC level 3 or DC Off-board Commercial charging  50 kW208-600 Vac or Vdc 3-phase or DC mains station 100 kW

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are schematic diagrams 200A and 200B illustratingtwo embodiments of the on-board EV fast charger. FIG. 2A is directed toan onboard AC fast charger 200 with a single inverter circuit 202connected to energy storage (battery) 204. FIG. 2B is directed to aninverting stage having dual inverter circuits 202, each inverter circuitconnected to a corresponding battery of 204 and traction converter.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the inverting stage can be utilized to perform highfrequency switching and shaping of the current provided from the source(e.g., a grid). Relative to a rectifier approach (e.g., of FIG. 1B), animprovement is provided as a rectifier is unable to shape a current,forcing the traction inverters to shape the current. This may bepotentially important due to the higher rating of the traction converterswitches, employing the traction inverters for current shaping leads tohigher switching losses and lower system efficiency. If a high frequencyinverting stage is utilized, it also enables the approach to operatewith bi-directional power exchange to the grid, which would not bepossible with a diode rectifier approach.

In contrast to the single inverting stage of FIG. 2A, the dual invertingstage of FIG. 2B allows lower voltage-rating components (e.g., more costefficient semiconductors) in the inverting stage, allowing interleavedswitching techniques to be leveraged to improve an effective switchingfrequency (which may reduce switching losses). Relative to the diodeapproach, connections to higher voltage AC networks can be achievedwithout significantly increasing battery voltage levels. For example, inthe approach of some embodiments, where it is important to keep batteryvoltage levels low in a vehicle for safety reasons, e.g., 450 V, theapproach can utilize two 450 V batteries operating with invertingstages, in contrast to the diode rectifier approach of FIG. 1B, whichwould require a 900 V battery (which increases a hazard level arisingfrom a potential short circuit current within the system).

An on-board EV fast charger is introduced, offering cost-effective andconvenient EV charging from an AC power outlet. The converter is capableof operating both as a drive (providing locomotion through torque, forexample, as the electric vehicle is being driven from location tolocation) and as a DC or AC fast charger.

The embodiments of the on-board fast charger are comprised of four majorparts, which are the motor, traction converter, battery, and switchingstage (interchangeably noted as “inverting stage”, but note that it isnot necessarily limited to inversion and can also be used for shaping).In both embodiments shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the AC power outlet isdirectly connected to the proposed on-board integrated charge and drivesystem.

The isolation transformer may not be necessary depending on therequirements of a particular usage scenario. If required, thetransformer itself could be installed at the charging station. Thisimplies that minimal charging infrastructure is needed for the chargingstation. It would be limited to either a cable or cable with isolationtransformer.

The proposed on-board AC fast charger of some embodiments serves a dualpurpose as both a single-phase AC fast charger when the vehicle isstationary, and a traction converter when the vehicle is in motion. As afast charger, the topology is capable of accommodating all commoncommercial input AC voltages including 208V commercial, 277V/480Vcommercial (US), 240/400V (EU) and 347V/600V commercial (Canada) whencharging. This enables AC electric vehicle charging without using adedicated battery charger, leading to considerable potential in cost,weight, efficiency savings, and convenience for the customer.

For some embodiments that use a single traction converter as shown inFIG. 2A, the EV dynamically redeploys the traction converter and motorfor use in AC fast charging of the battery when stationary.

Use of the motor's leakage inductance allows the charger to re-usecomponents that are not in use when the vehicle is stationary. Whencharging, the inverting stage and traction converter are controlled tocharge the battery. Beyond charging of the battery, the system allowsfor bi-directional operation and can operate at a plurality of powerfactors.

Another embodiment of the converter system uses two inverter systems 202as shown in FIG. 2B. This embodiment use a dual inverter drive with twotraction converters to drive the car when in motion. The topology'sstructure allows two lower voltage batteries 204 to be indirectly seriesconnected through two traction converters. The structure provides thatthe voltage range is expanded, thus allowing for higher input ACvoltages to be accommodated during charging without the need for aboost-type converter, for instance.

As a motor drive, the dual inverter drive has the potential benefit ofincreasing the rated voltage of the motor drive, and consequentlyincreasing drive system efficiency. Such an embodiment also has twoseparate energy storage units where one or two of these energy storageunits may be batteries of similar or dissimilar chemistry (or otherenergy storage devices).

While the two energy storage sources in the figure are batteries, anyenergy storage source may be used (i.e., batteries, supercapacitors,fuel cells, or any combination thereof). For illustrative purposes,energy storage sources of battery type are referred to in this document.

Two inverting stages would be used in conjunction with the two tractionconverters to charge the energy storage units, in an embodiment. Incomparison to embodiments that use a single inverter, the dual-inverterembodiment would require an open-ended machine as shown in FIG. 2B,although some embodiments may use a multi-phase machine. Both thesingle-inverter and dual-inverter embodiments use the same principles toachieve single-phase fast charging from the AC grid (or a DC grid insome embodiments).

The operation of some embodiments of the charger shown, for example, inFIGS. 2A and 2B is described below. The converter topology is operatingas an on-board charger. As a drive, the topology would normally operateas an inverter drive when the EV is in motion.

Two exemplary embodiments of the proposed AC fast charger are shown inFIGS. 3A and 3B, which are schematic diagrams illustrating a singleinverter embodiment in FIG. 3A and a dual inverter embodiment in FIG.3B. In these example embodiments, the inverting stage (e.g., invertercircuit) is implemented with IGBT active switches 302 304, butalternative switching devices may be used.

With reference to FIG. 3B, shaping of the current can be achieved eitherthrough modulation of the inverting stage (in this figure, half bridge 1or 2), or through the traction converter (e.g., traction converter 1 or2), or a combination thereof. Shaping of the current is conductedthrough controlling operation of the switches of the inverting stageand/or the traction converter, such that the current is shaped to tracka desired signal shape (e.g., a sinusoid in the context of an AC source,or a DC signal in the context of a DC source).

It is important to note that the inverting stage is not necessarilylimited to inverting, rather, it, in some embodiments, can also beconsidered a shaping stage (e.g., the switches are used for currentshaping). In such cases, the traction inverter takes the role of theinverting stage. Where the inverting stage is used for shaping, theembodiments described in various embodiments herein (and combinationsand permutations thereof) would thus substitute the term inverting stagefor shaping stage.

The inverting stage and the traction stages are utilized for (1)inverting and (2) shaping. In an embodiment, one of the stages isutilized for inverting and the other for shaping, and a controller canbe utilized to effectively assign which of the stages is utilized forinverting and which is utilized for shaping (e.g., by changing aswitching pattern, where one is switching at 50/60 Hz (the oneconducting inverting), and the other is switching at higher frequency(the one conducting shaping)). The stage with the higher switching losswould, in an embodiment, be operated at the lower frequency, and thismay be selected by a controller circuit of some embodiments.

In a specific embodiment, the traction converter is utilized forinverting and the inverting stage is utilized for shaping, as typically,the traction converter has higher switching losses due to its dual usefor providing drive functionality (e.g., to a motor vehicle). In analternate embodiment, the inverting stage is utilized for providinginverting functionality (e.g., inverting the grid voltage in accordancewith a switching control) and the traction converter is utilized forshaping functionality (e.g., this would occur if loss analysis indicatesthat such an approach would be more efficient, which, for example, couldbe selected, either pre-determined or dynamically determined by acontroller circuit). In a case where an inverting stage is comprised ofdiodes, the shaping must be done by the traction converter.

Generally, the traction converter is larger than the inverting stage,meaning that switching in the traction converter stage has higherlosses. In such a case, the switching would preferentially be conductedat the inverting stage, providing a mechanism to optimize losses (e.g.,first optimizing efficiency of the drive and traction converters andthereafter designing and optimizing the inverting stage for improvedcharging efficiency (e.g., maximum charging efficiency). A drawback ofthe alternative diode approach is that a smaller charger integrated witha large drive may be highly inefficient as shaping of a small chargingcurrent would have to be performed by a traction converter using largesemiconductors with relatively high switching losses (which, forexample, can be fixed regardless of how much current is being drawn, sothis problem is exacerbated for smaller charging currents).

An embodiment of the proposed system could use diodes instead of IGBTs,but with reduced functionality. For the remainder of this document,discussion will focus upon dual-inverter embodiments of the AC fastcharger as single-inverter embodiments operate identically withappropriate minor adjustments.

Exemplary waveforms are provided in FIG. 4 based on FIG. 3B. Thedual-inverter embodiment shown in FIG. 3B is divided into the uppercharging stage 306 and lower charging stage 308 where each chargingstage consists of a traction converter, battery, and inverting stage. Inthis example, the traction converter is providing the shapingfunctionality.

Effectively, the inverting stage voltage, v_(inv1), is providing theon-off state of the inverting stage, and the traction inverter voltageis proportional to the modulation index of the inverting stage.

When operating as part of the on-board fast charger, each tractionconverter phase denoted as u, v, and w will produce equal voltages inorder to drive the same current through each phase of the motor. Hence,FIG. 4 shows i_(su), i_(sv) and i_(sw) is one third of i_(ac). Theseequal currents are referred to as zero sequence currents and the machinewill not produce any average torque when only zero sequence currents arepassed through the motor. Thus, this arrangement is suitable forstationary charging of the batteries. In certain embodiments, a zerosequence current can be a 50/60 Hz sinusoidal state/waveform, whencharging from AC, or it would be a DC current when charging from a DCsource. In either case, the rotor of the machine is exposed to norotating flux, such that no rotational torque would be produced.

In addition to tracking identical currents, complementary modulation mayalso be applied across the top and bottom charging stages (e.g.,inverting stages or traction converters, whichever is conducting theshaping) to reduce switching harmonics on the machine, in someembodiments. For example, in reference to FIG. 3B, if half bridge 1 andhalf bridge 2 are performing the shaping, switches of half bridge 1would be operated complementarily to half bridge 2 switches, or viceversa. For example, the devices are switching at high frequency and canbe operated at different modulation carrier phase shifts to reduceharmonics (e.g., phase shift can be adjusted to reduce the effect ofharmonics, for example, by 180 degrees).

In embodiments where the traction converters are conducting the shaping,each phase of the modulation carrier in each converter leg is offset(e.g., 120 degrees for a 3 phase traction converter) from theneighboring leg to further minimize harmonics in the input chargingcurrent (e.g., AC or DC, in accordance with various embodiments).

The waveforms in FIG. 4 show the voltages produced by the upper chargingstage when an on-board fast charger is connected to grid voltage v_(ac)and current i_(ac). As described, the voltage produced by the uppercharging stage v_(chg;u1), v_(chg;v1), and v_(chg;w1), defined as:v _(chg,u1) =v _(inv1) −v _(u1)  (1)v _(chg,v1) =v _(inv1) −v _(v1)  (2)v _(chg,w1) =v _(inv1) −v _(w1)  (3)are equal and approximately half of the AC grid voltage.

In this non-limiting example (note that the inverting function and theshaping function can be conducted by a different combination of the halfbridge of FIG. 3B and the traction converter), the inverting stage(e.g., whichever stage is performing the inversion function) voltagevinyl illustrates that the inverting stage only operates every halfcycle in order to allow the charging stage to produce bipolar voltages.As voltage inversion only occurs every half line cycle, the invertingstage must switch at a minimum of 60 Hz (or 50 Hz), but could beswitched at a higher frequency if desired while producing similarresults. This minimizes cooling as the inverting stage can be optimisedfor conduction losses only, which reduces cooling requirements andsystem weight.

The grid voltage and current show the expected input from the grid. Onlythe upper charging stage waveforms (denoted with subscript 1) areplotted because the lower charging stage is identical. It is expectedthat the upper and lower charging stage produce an equal voltage. Thisis why the upper charging stage voltage is equal to half the gridvoltage.

The inverting stage and traction converter voltage shows the voltageproduced at the terminals of each half bridge. The combination of thesetwo voltages equals to the overall charging stage voltage. The tractionconverter voltage, upper charging stage voltage and motor currents showthree waveforms because there are three phases to the tractionconverter. In this example, all three-phases are operated identically.Therefore the current in the three-phases are identical and equal to onethird of the grid current.

In this diagram, the system is operated at 60 Hz (at the grid frequency,or at 50 Hz) to allow the charging stage as a whole to produce bipolarvoltages. However, the operation is showed as an example and the chargeris not limited to operating the inverting stage at 60 Hz (or 50 Hz). Thecharging stage (inverting stage and traction converter together) can beconsidered as a bipolar voltage source. Operating requirements aresatisfied so long as the charging stage produces half the AC voltage.

Finally, the traction converter alone is only able to produce voltage ofa single polarity. If the traction converter produces v_(u1), v_(v1),and v_(w1), which are identical, as shown in FIG. 4 combined with theinverting stage output, the desired v_(chg;u1), v_(chg;v1), andv_(chg;w1) are produced. The traction converter must operate at afrequency sufficient to track the fundamental grid frequency and meetgrid requirements.

In addition to AC operation, the proposed system is also applicable toDC systems as shown in FIG. 13, shown in diagram 1300A. This is similarto the operation of an alternative approach, however bidirectional faultblocking capabilities are now added due to the inverting stage. Forexample, the topology of FIG. 2B can be flexibly deployed to accommodateeither DC or AC sources, in some embodiments. Where the source is DC,the circuit can still regulate current even if inversion is not requiredand DC currents flow through the motor windings.

The nominal operation of the on-board fast charger may be furtheraugmented to enable energy balancing between the upper and lowercharging stages. This may be realised through several means bestdescribed using the average model 500 shown in FIG. 5. In the model,each phase of the charging stage is represented by a bipolar variablevoltage source. In normal operation, as described earlier, the upper andlower charging stage output equal voltages.

If the state of charge (SOC) between the upper and lower charging stageenergy storage devices (e.g., batteries) need to be equalized (e.g.,arising from non-idealities or non-matched energy storage devices, forexample, where a storage capacity is reached for only one of the energystorage devices but not the other), several different methods can beused to balance the energy between them. In some embodiments, an energystorage device monitoring mechanism (e.g., circuit) is interconnectedwith the switching controller so that the switching controller canmodify operational characteristics to correct for the imbalance.

In normal operation the combined voltage of the charging stages must beV_(chg), therefore the voltage and currents of the system are given byequation (5) to (7).

$\begin{matrix}{v_{1u} = {v_{1v} = {v_{1w} = {{0.5}V_{chg}}}}} & (5) \\{v_{2u} = {v_{2v} = {v_{2w} = {{0.5}V_{chg}}}}} & (6) \\{i_{u} = {i_{v} = {i_{w} = \frac{i_{ac}}{3}}}} & (7)\end{matrix}$

The power of the upper and lower charging stage are equal as seen inequation (8) and (9).P ₁=Re{0.5v _(chg) i _(chg)}  (8)P ₂=Re{0.5v _(chg) i _(chg)}  (9)

Some embodiments of the proposed on-board fast charger can balanceenergy between the energy storage devices of upper and lower chargingstages by either modifying the relative voltages or circulating currentwithin the motor phases.

An example of modifying the relative voltages would be if voltages andcurrents were produced as given in equations (10) to (12).

$\begin{matrix}{v_{1u} = {v_{1v} = {v_{1w} = {0.6V_{chg}}}}} & (10) \\{v_{2u} = {v_{2v} = {v_{2w} = {0.4V_{chg}}}}} & (11) \\{i_{u} = {i_{v} = {i_{w} = \frac{i_{ac}}{3}}}} & (12)\end{matrix}$

The power of the upper and lower charging stage are unequal as seen inequation (13) and (14).P ₁=Re{0.6v _(chg) i _(chg)}  (13)P ₂=Re{0.4v _(chg) i _(chg)}  (14)

Other voltage ratios between the upper and lower charging stage may beused provided they sum to 1.0.

An example of circulating current would be if voltages and currents wereproduced as given in equations (15) to (20).

$\begin{matrix}{v_{1u} = {{0.6}V_{chg}}} & (15) \\{v_{1v} = {v_{1w} = {{0.5}V_{chg}}}} & (16) \\{v_{2u} = {{0.4}V_{chg}}} & (17) \\{v_{2v} = {v_{2w} = {{0.5}V_{chg}}}} & (18) \\{i_{u} = {\frac{i_{ac}}{3} + i_{circ}}} & (19) \\{i_{v} = {i_{w} = {\frac{i_{ac}}{3} - \frac{i_{circ}}{2}}}} & (20)\end{matrix}$

The power of the upper and lower charging stage are unequal as seen inequation (21) and (22).

$\begin{matrix}{P_{1} = {{Re}\left\{ {{\frac{8}{15}v_{chg}i_{chg}} + {\frac{1}{10}v_{chg}i_{circ}}} \right\}}} & (13) \\{P_{2} = {{Re}\left\{ {{\frac{7}{15}v_{chg}i_{chg}} - {\frac{1}{10}v_{chg}i_{circ}}} \right\}}} & (14)\end{matrix}$

In this example, all currents are at the fundamental frequency howeverthe currents do not need to be limited to the fundamental frequencycurrent.

These examples show two possible approaches enabled by the structure ofthe onboard fast charger for transferring energy between the upper andlower charging stages.

Bi-directional power flow and grid support operations are now describedbelow.

In some embodiments, the inverting stage may be implemented with currentbidirectional two quadrant switches as opposed to single quadrantswitching devices. When these switches are used, the inverting stage mayinvert the voltage of the AC fast charger at any phase of thefundamental grid frequency provided that the maximum expected inputvoltage at the differential terminals of the converter is the less thanthe sum of the energy storage element voltages. In the case of singleinverter embodiments, the energy storage device voltage must be greaterthan the peak voltage under all conditions. In the case of dual inverterembodiments, the sum of the energy storage device voltages must begreater than the peak voltage under all state-of-charge conditions. Thisis a potential advantage for dual inverter embodiments, as a greaterrange of energy storage devices (e.g., safer storage devices) can beused for dual inverter embodiments as the voltage requirements are lessonerous.

This implies the charger is capable of bidirectional power flow at anypower factor making it suitable for grid support applications. The EVcharger can now provide grid for services such as load levelling, peakshaving, frequency control, operate as a back-up power supply, etc. Inaddition, the system is capable of providing reactive power for gridvoltage support. As an added benefit, the system is capable of faultblocking capabilities in case of grid faults.

A control strategy, according to some embodiments, is described below.The operation of the charger is controlled such that, for example, thecharger is configured to enable charging of the EV battery while meetinggrid requirements.

While the requirements may be met with filter components, the morelightweight solution is to control the on-board fast charger to producevoltages and currents with low distortion. Weight reduction is animportant factor for consideration in the development and design ofelectric vehicles, as lowered weight allows for an increased drivingrange, or longer operation.

For the on-board fast charger, each charging stage may be considered asa bipolar voltage source, which can be used to control the AC gridcurrent with low distortion. A high-level control scheme suitable forthis purpose is shown in diagram 600 on FIG. 6. It shows a chargingcontroller 602 and an energy balance controller 604 connected to amodulation block 606 that would be used to control the on-board fastcharger.

The charging controller 602 ensures that the fundamental frequencycurrent is regulated to meet grid code while also dividing the currentequally amongst the phases of the motor. Due to the inverting stage, thecontroller is capable of tracking bipolar currents and therefore onlytracks a current at the grid frequency.

The energy balance controller 604 internally transfers power between theupper and lower charging stages without affecting the grid voltage orcurrent. Finally, the modulation block 606 uses input from thecontroller to create the necessary gating signals to produce desiredwaveforms as shown in FIG. 4. Alternative control methods may also bepossible.

Bandwidth requirements are described below. In comparison to embodimentswithout the inverting stage, those embodiments would only be capable ofproducing unipolar voltages, and would instead have to be connected to adiode rectifier, for example.

The traction converter would operate akin to a power factor correction(PFC) converter, which tracks to a rectified sinusoidal reference tominimize distortion. This forces the converter to track frequencymultiples of the fundamental grid frequency to meet grid requirements.

FIG. 7 and Table II show the low frequency breakdown of a rectifiedsinusoid. It is determined that the 6^(th) harmonic component reduces toapproximately 2% of the fundamental component. Thus, a controller wouldneed to track frequencies up to the 6^(th) harmonic of the fundamental(i.e., 720 Hz for 60 Hz grid) to sufficiently reproduce the rectifiedwaveform. Therefore, embodiments of the proposed on-board fast chargerhave a lower bandwidth requirement which not only simplifies controldesign but lowers the minimum switching frequency requirement.

TABLE II Harmonic Order Frequency (Hz) Amplitude (×i_(pk)/π) % ofFundamental 0 0 2 — 1 120 1.33 100 2 240 0.266 20 3 360 0.114 8.57 4 4800.0635 4.76 5 600 0.0404 3.03 6 720 0.0279 2.1 7 840 0.0205 1.54 8 9600.0156 1.18

Simulation Results

A detailed model of the integrated charging topology is simulated inMATLAB using the PLECS toolbox. The high-level diagram of the system isshown in FIG. 3B.

Two identical battery packs are charged from a 120V single-phase ACsource via the on-board single-phase AC fast charger and drive system.In this simulation, the battery packs are replaced by ideal voltagesources. System parameters are listed in Table III.

TABLE III Simulation Parameters Symbol Value Grid Parameters GridVoltage V_(g) 120 V Grid Current i_(g) 11.7 A Average Power P_(avg) 1.4kW On-Board Fast Charger Parameters Peak input voltage V_(in, pk) 170 VOutput voltage V₁, V₂ 120 V Inductor resistance R_(s) 0.3Ω InductanceL_(s) 0.5 mH Battery voltage V_(batt1), V_(batt2) 120 V Switchingfrequency f_(sw) 9 kHz

FIG. 8 shows the voltage and current quantities of the charger whenoperated at unity power factor. In this figure, the traction convertervoltages and upper charging state voltages are filtered to show the lowfrequency switching components of the voltages. These figures match theideal waveforms as shown in FIG. 4. For regular operation, allthree-phases of the traction converter are equal. Hence, FIG. 8 onlyshows phase u voltages and currents. For reference, the other phasevoltages and currents in FIG. 14A, FIG. 14B, FIG. 14C are provided toshow that all phase voltages and currents are equal.

Also, as expected, the inductor currents per phase tracks approximatelyone-third of the input current. As such, only zero-sequence current isinjected into the motor windings to ensure minimal generation of nettorque during standstill charging.

FIG. 9 shows the voltage and current quantities of the charger whenoperated at 0.7 power factor leading. These simulation resultsdemonstrate the ability of the charger to operate at various powerfactors. Since the converter is not transferring energy between theupper and lower charging stations, all phase voltages and currents areequal and are not shown.

In addition, the on-board fast charger can also provide power to thegrid for grid support applications, which is shown in FIG. 10. Thesesimulation results verify the bidirectional functionalities of theproposed system, in accordance with some embodiments. Since theconverter is not transferring energy between the upper and lowercharging stations, all phase voltages and currents are equal and are notshown.

For both single and dual-inverter drive embodiments, the total batteryvoltage must be greater than that of the peak AC voltage. Thus, fordual-inverter drive embodiments using identical battery packs to thesingle-inverter drive, the voltage range can be double that of thesingle-inverter.

For embodiments using the dual inverter drive, power may be transferredbetween battery packs as described in various embodiments.

FIG. 11 introduces a voltage offset between the upper and lower chargingstage to charge one energy storage device over the other. This isdemonstrated by the instantaneous battery power since the average valueof P_(batt1) is higher than P_(batt2).

Alternatively, a circulating current may be introduced as demonstratedin FIGS. 12A-12C (e.g., as a way to balance energy storage devicevoltages). In contrast to a zero sequence current, a circulating currentwill produce a stator flux in the machine that could potentiallyinteract with the rotor to produce torque. FIG. 12A is provided inrelation to one phase, and FIG. 12B is provided in relation to the othertwo phases. The different amplitudes of the currents are a result of thecirculating current. FIG. 12C demonstrates that a different averagepower enters each storage device.

The stator flux will have a fixed orientation defined by the phasecurrent(s). The orientation of the stator flux must be set in alignmentwith the rotor magnetic axis to ensure no torque is generated as aresult of the circulating current.

The introduction of the circulating current may be useful, for example,where the other approach does not work or has limited capacity, forexample, in situations of extreme imbalance as between the voltages ofthe energy storage devices while simultaneously being interfaced to arelatively high voltage AC network.

This could result, for example, where heterogeneous types or media ofdevices are used for energy storage, such as a hybrid approach with acapacitor and a battery (one may reach a full state of charge orotherwise be unable to receive more charge and may need charge to bediverted to the other).

The net field produced by the circulating currents would be operated atan angle that is aligned to the rotor axis where no net average torquewould be produced.

Simulation results at a higher power level and grid voltage aredemonstrated in FIG. 15. It can be seen the operation is similar to whathas been described. The system parameters for this additional simulationresult is presented in Table IV.

TABLE IV Simulation Parameters Symbol Value Grid Parameters Grid VoltageV_(g) 240 V Grid Current i_(g) 80 A Average Power P_(avg) 19.2 kWOn-Board Fast Charger Parameters Peak input voltage V_(in, pk) 340 VOutput voltage V₁, V₂ 400 V Inductor resistance R_(s) 0.3Ω InductanceL_(s) 0.5 mH Battery voltage V_(batt1), V_(batt2) 400 V Switchingfrequency f_(sw) 9 kHz

Experimental Results

An experimental set-up was constructed to demonstrate unity power factoroperation of some embodiments. FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 are photographsshowing the charging stage as well as the electric motor in thisexperimental set-up. A summary of the main circuit parameters for thisexperimental set-up are provided in Table V.

TABLE V Experimental Circuit Parameters Symbol Value Grid ParametersGrid Voltage V_(g) 120 V Grid Current i_(g) 14.8 A Average Power P_(avg)1.78 kW On-Board Fast Charger Parameters Peak input voltage V_(in, pk)170 V Output voltage V₁, V₂ 120 V Inductor resistance R_(s) 0.045ΩInductance L_(s) 0.5 mH Battery voltage V_(batt1), V_(batt2) 120 VSwitching frequency f_(sw) 10 kHz

FIG. 18 presents experimental waveforms captured from the system. Theunity power factor operation can be directly observed as the gridcurrent is in-phase with the input grid voltage. As it can be seen andinferred, the phase currents track exactly one-third of the gridcurrent, and are equal, producing no net torque in the machine.

As opposed to the simulation results, it is important to noteinterleaved operation is not demonstrated in these experimental results.For this reason the switching frequency harmonics can be observed to begreater in magnitude than those in the corresponding simulation results.1806 is a representative phase current, 1804 is the grid current 1802 isthe grid voltage—showing the motor current is sinusoidal (not arectified sinusoid), and it shows that the phase of the grid current1802 is being made to be sinusoidal and in phase with the grid voltage,showing that the sinusoidal charging of 1806 is achieved with asinusoidal motor current.

CONCLUSION

A new on-board integrated charger and drive system offeringcost-effective and convenient EV charging from an AC power outlet isdescribed. The topology and associated controls to enable single-phaseon-board EV fast charging are developed and validated. When in motion,the topology operates as a drive, but when stationary the system candynamically re-deploy the motor and traction converter to operate aspart of a single-phase AC charger or a DC charger, thus presenting acost-effective solution that utilizes the installed components of a car.

In some embodiments the proposed system can operate at any power factorand is even capable of bidirectional power flow. This allows the vehicleto be used for grid support applications, such as voltage support,frequency regulation, and peak shaving. In addition, the proposedconverter has fault-blocking capabilities.

When acting as a charger, it is controlled to reduce low frequencyharmonics thereby reducing infrastructure requirements to a solitarycable or cable with transformer if isolation is needed. However, incomparison to other methods of AC grid charging, the proposed systemdoes not rely upon a diode rectifier. This implies that only afundamental frequency current need be tracked as opposed to a rectifiedsinusoid thus simplifying control requirements. In comparison, thecontroller would have to track at minimum a 720 Hz signal as opposed toa 60 Hz signal for the proposed system.

Variants of the proposed system are described where one is based on asingle inverter drive system, and another is based on a dual inverterdrive system.

A benefit of the dual inverter drive system is the integration of twoseparate energy storage sources (i.e. batteries, supercapacitors, fuelcells or a combination thereof) where one may be better suited for powerdelivery and the other better suited for energy storage.

The use of two storage elements enables the use higher voltage motors toincrease drivetrain efficiency without use of a single higher voltagestorage element and enable higher voltage fast charging than otherapproaches. For dual inverter drive variant, energy transfer between theseparate energy storage units is facilitated by the approaches describedin various embodiments without impacting the grid.

As for application, embodiments of the proposed topology are able toaccommodate all common commercial input AC voltages including 208Vcommercial, 277V/480V commercial (US), 240/400V (EU) and 347V/600Vcommercial (Canada) when charging.

The proposed topology of some embodiments' charging rate is limited bythermal constraints of the motor and traction power electronics, thushighlighting an ability to charge the vehicle directly from existinggrid infrastructure and scaling charging capabilities with thedrivetrain system.

Embodiments of methods, systems, and apparatus are described throughreference to the drawings.

The following discussion provides many example embodiments of theinventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a singlecombination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter isconsidered to include all possible combinations of the disclosedelements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and asecond embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subjectmatter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A,B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.

The embodiments of the devices, systems and methods described herein maybe implemented in a combination of both electronic hardware andsoftware. These embodiments may be implemented on programmable computersor other electronic control systems, such as control mechanisms fortiming or otherwise controlling operation of switches, transistors,among others.

Where software is utilized to generate control signals, program code isapplied to input data. Although the embodiments have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein.

Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to belimited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine,manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps describedin the specification.

As can be understood, the examples described above and illustrated areintended to be exemplary only.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electric vehicle fast charger adapted forre-using magnetic components of one or more motors of an electricvehicle having one or more traction converters having one or moretraction converter switches that are not in use when the electricvehicle is stationary, the electric vehicle fast charger comprising: apair of differential terminals configured for coupling to a power gridproviding a grid voltage having a waveshape and frequency, the pair ofdifferential terminals carrying a grid current between the power gridand the electric vehicle fast charger; one or more sensors coupled tothe power grid to track the waveshape and the frequency of the gridvoltage being provided by the power grid; one or more sets of switchescoupled to the power grid through the differential terminals and coupledto a corresponding energy storage device of one or more energy storagedevices, each set of switches including at least one of: currentuni-directional switches or current bi-directional two quadrantswitches; the one or more energy storage devices, each coupled to acorresponding set of switches of the one or more sets of switches andcoupled to a corresponding traction converter of the one or moretraction converters; and a switching controller configured forgenerating gating signals for: controlling the switches of the one ormore sets of switches to (i) operate at the frequency of the gridvoltage to conduct inversion of the grid current at the frequency of thegrid voltage, or (ii) operate at a higher frequency than the frequencyof the grid voltage to conduct current shaping of the grid current torectify the grid current to approximate the waveshape of the gridvoltage; and controlling the one or more traction converter switches to(i) operate at the frequency of the grid voltage to conduct inversion ofthe grid current at the frequency of the grid voltage, or (ii) operateat a higher frequency than the frequency of the grid voltage to conductcurrent shaping to rectify the grid current to approximate the waveshapeof the grid voltage; wherein at least one of the switches of the one ormore set of switches and the one or more traction converter switchesprovides inversion and at least one of the switches of the one or moreset of switches and the one or more traction converter switches providescurrent shaping.
 2. The electric vehicle fast charger of claim 1,wherein the switching controller is further configured for determiningwhich of the switches of the one or more set of switches or the one ormore traction converter switches provides inversion.
 3. The electricvehicle fast charger of claim 1, wherein the switching controller isfurther configured for monitoring operational characteristics of theelectric vehicle fast charger and the determining which of the switchesof the one or more set of switches or the one or more traction converterswitches provides inversion is dynamically conducted based at least onthe monitored operational characteristics.
 4. The electric vehicle fastcharger of claim 1, wherein the switching controller is furtherconfigured for monitoring operational characteristics of the electricvehicle fast charger and the determining which of: the switches of theone or more set of switches or the one or more traction converterswitches provides current shaping is dynamically conducted based atleast on the monitored operational characteristics.
 5. The electricvehicle fast charger of claim 1, wherein the one or more sets ofswitches includes two sets of switches; wherein the one or more energystorage devices includes two energy storage devices; wherein the one ormore traction converters includes two traction converters; and whereineach of set of switches is associated with a corresponding energystorage device and a corresponding traction converter.
 6. The electricvehicle fast charger of claim 5, wherein each operating voltage of thetwo energy storage devices is less than the grid voltage.
 7. Theelectric vehicle fast charger of claim 5, wherein each of the one ormore sets of switches are operated at different modulation carrier phaseshifts to reduce harmonics.
 8. The electric vehicle fast charger ofclaim 5, wherein each of the switches corresponding to each of the twotraction converters are operated to at different modulation carrierphase shifts to reduce harmonics.
 9. The electric vehicle fast chargerof claim 5, comprising an energy storage device monitoring circuitconfigured for monitoring charge levels of the energy storage devices,and upon detecting an imbalance of the charge levels between energystorage devices, causing the switching controller to apply a modulationbias such that over time, the charge levels of the energy storagedevices becomes balanced.
 10. The electric vehicle fast charger of claim5, comprising an energy storage device monitoring circuit configured formonitoring charge levels of the energy storage devices, and upondetecting an imbalance of the charge levels between energy storagedevices, causing the switching controller to introduce a circulatingcurrent between motor phases of the traction converters such that overtime, the charge levels of the energy storage devices becomes balanced.11. A method for re-using magnetic components of one or more motors ofan electric vehicle having one or more traction converters having one ormore traction converter switches that are not in use when the electricvehicle is stationary, the method comprising: coupling the electricvehicle to a power grid, the power grid providing a grid voltage havinga waveshape and frequency to establish a grid current between the powergrid and the electric vehicle, the coupling across one or more sets ofswitches that are coupled to a corresponding energy storage device ofone or more energy storage devices each coupled to a corresponding setof switches of the one or more sets of switches and coupled to acorresponding traction converter of the one or more traction converters;tracking the waveshape and the frequency of the grid voltage beingprovided by the power grid; and generating a first set of gating signalsfor controlling the switches of the one or more sets of switches to (i)operate at the frequency of the grid voltage to conduct inversion of thegrid current at the frequency of the grid voltage, or (ii) operate at ahigher frequency than the frequency of the grid voltage to conductcurrent shaping to rectify the grid current to approximate the waveshapeof the grid voltage; and generating a second set of gating signals forcontrolling the one or more traction converter switches to (i) operateat the frequency of the grid voltage to conduct inversion of the gridcurrent at the frequency of the grid voltage, or (ii) operate at ahigher frequency than the frequency of the grid voltage to conductcurrent shaping to rectify the grid current to approximate the waveshapeof the grid voltage; wherein at least one of the switches of the one ormore set of switches and the one or more traction converter switchesprovides inversion and at least one of the switches of the one or moreset of switches and the one or more traction converter switches providescurrent shaping.
 12. The method of claim 11, comprising determiningwhich of the switches of the one or more set of switches or the one ormore traction converter switches provides inversion.
 13. The method ofclaim 11, comprising monitoring operational characteristics of theelectric vehicle; and dynamically assigning which of the switches of (i)the one or more set of switches or (ii) the one or more tractionconverter switches provides inversion based at least on the monitoredoperational characteristics.
 14. The method of claim 11, comprisingmonitoring operational characteristics of the electric vehicle; anddynamically assigning which of the switches of (i) the one or more setof switches or (ii) the one or more traction converter switches providesshaping based at least on the monitored operational characteristics. 15.The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more sets of switchesincludes two sets of switches; wherein the one or more energy storagedevices includes two energy storage devices; wherein the one or moretraction converters includes two traction converters; and wherein eachof set of switches is associated with a corresponding energy storagedevice and a corresponding traction converter.
 16. The method of claim15, wherein each operating voltage of the two energy storage devices isless than the grid voltage.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein eachswitch of the one or more sets of switches are operated at differentmodulation carrier phase shifts to reduce harmonics.
 18. The method ofclaim 15, wherein each of the switches corresponding to each of the twotraction converters are operated to at different modulation carrierphase shifts to reduce harmonics.
 19. The method of claim 15, comprisingmonitoring charge levels of the energy storage devices, and upondetecting an imbalance of the charge levels between energy storagedevices, causing application of a modulation bias such that over time,the charge levels of the energy storage devices becomes balanced.
 20. Anon-transitory machine readable medium, storing machine interpretableinstructions, which when executed, cause a processor or a configurablecircuit to perform steps of a method for re-using magnetic components ofone or more motors of an electric vehicle having one or more tractionconverters having one or more traction converter switches that are notin use when the electric vehicle is stationary, the method comprising:coupling the electric vehicle to a power grid, the power grid providinga grid voltage having a waveshape and frequency to establish a gridcurrent between the power grid and the electric vehicle, the couplingacross one or more sets of switches that are coupled to a correspondingenergy storage device of one or more energy storage devices each coupledto a corresponding set of switches of the one or more sets of switchesand coupled to a corresponding traction converter of the one or moretraction converters; tracking the waveshape and the frequency of thegrid voltage being provided by the power grid; generating a first set ofgating signals for controlling the switches of the one or more sets ofswitches to (i) operate at the frequency of the grid voltage to conductinversion of the grid current at the frequency of the grid voltage, or(ii) operate at a higher frequency than the frequency of the gridvoltage to conduct current shaping to rectify the grid current toapproximate the waveshape of the grid voltage; and generating a secondset of gating signals for controlling the one or more traction converterswitches to (i) operate at the frequency of the grid voltage to conductinversion of the grid current at the frequency of the grid voltage, or(ii) operate at a higher frequency than the frequency of the gridvoltage to conduct current shaping to rectify the grid current toapproximate the waveshape; wherein at least one of the switches of theone or more set of switches and the one or more traction converterswitches provides inversion and at least one of the switches of the oneor more set of switches and the one or more traction converter switchesprovides current shaping.